Schenectady County SPCA Provides Background on Buster’s Law

Posted onJuly 16, 2008

A sickening story for any animal lover – another cat is found mutilated in Troy.

For the second time in just over a month, police are investigating a case of animal abuse. This time, the animal was found on the Troy side of the Congress Street Bridge. In June, another cat was also found mutilated inside of a piece of luggage along the banks of the Hudson River in Troy. And as NEWS10’s Anya Tucker reports, police are now trying to find out if both cases are related.

“It looks like there is torture and mutilation evident,” says Troy Police Sergeant Dave Dean. Police say the cat’s jaw and cheeks were broken, but the final act ending the animals life was a spike through its head.

“There is also a fatal injury to the cat, looks like a nail gun or similar device was used,” Sgt. Dean says. The cat is described as a 6-month-old domestic short hair, black and white cat. It was found wearing a purple and white flea collar. The cat was found Wednesday morning around 6 o’clock on the north side of the Congress Street Bridge, wrapped in a tarp.

“It looks like a painter’s tarp it was wrapped up in,” says Troy Police Animal Control Officer Kevin McDonough. “This looks like they threw it over the rail into the water, but it didn’t make it.”

One cat was found along the Hudson, mutilated and stuffed inside a suitcase, just over a month ago. And now another, found beaten inside a tarp. They now make up two sickening cases of animal abuse in the past two months. Police are now trying to find out if they are connected.

At the Mohawk-Hudson River Humane Society, there are dozens of cats and kittens up for adoption. Director Brad Shear considers them the lucky ones.

“This is a person who acquired this cat and decided to do some very serious harm,” Shear says. And that is why police are asking for your help in finding the cat killer.

“Anybody with any information who was in the area at the time and saw anything can call Troy PD Bureau,” says Sgt. Dean.

Police are asking for specific information in this case. If you saw anything, you are asked to call the Troy Police at: (518) 270-4426. This case will be covered by Buster’s Law. Governor George Pataki signed Buster’s Law back in June of 2000, LIVE on NEWS10. The law makes the intentional killing or injury of an animal a felony and is punishable by up to two years in prison and a five-thousand dollar fine. Buster’s Law was named for an 18-month-old cat that was burned to death in Schenectady back in 1997.